f you teach an introductory class in a major university, especially in the sciences, you likely have over 100 students in the class. With such a large class, having open questions on exams with students writing answers in free format will use up a great deal of time grading the exams. This leaves several options for efficient grading, but the simplest is using multiple choice exams. One caveat though - for this type of exam to correctly assess the students' abilities requires careful crafting.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #10: Most details belong in the question, not the answers.
One simple way to provide clues to the clueless student is to have a great many details in the answers. If only the correct answer is detailed, the student can easily guess that the short answers are the wrong ones, also known as distracters. If you put in the time to make the distracters similarly detailed, there is a greater chance that a student will see a hint of inaccuracy in the distracters.
One way to avoid giving too many hints is to make the distracters identical to the correct answer, except in one or two crucial details. However, it would save you effort, and the students time if you would include all the identical details in the question, and make the answers as short and clear as possible.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #9: Penalize wrong answers to reduce the incentive to guess.
If you provide five answers for each question, take away 1/4 the point value of a question for each wrong answer. That way if a student is guessing at random he or she is likely to get one out of each five questions right, but the other four wrong, ending up with the same score of zero on average. Students who know enough to recognize that one or more of the distracters are wrong will increase the fraction of correct guesses, and have a higher score on average.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #8: If you pair up a distracter with the right answer, make the remaining distracters a matched set.
The simplest way to come up with good distracters is to find one or two critical numbers or characteristics, and then change only those between the correct answer and the distracters. Be careful, however, to make the wrong numbers at least plausible. Having an obviously ridiculous answer serves no useful purpose except to provide free points to students who do not know the material.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #7: Check for consistency in language and in units.
Keep in mind that having good distracters is critical to the task of separating students who know the material well from those who don't know it at all. Students who know the material partially should be able to get partial credit.
Having distracters that obviously cannot be correct because of some trivial error such as using the wrong tense, plural instead of singular, or simply the wrong unit will give away the game. The simplest way to verify the distracters will work is to read the question and a distracter to make sure they match. Then repeat for each of the other distracters.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #6: Don't use "none of the above," especially not as the correct answer.
It is human nature to try and "beat the opponent." In writing exams, you may find yourself thinking of the students as being on the opposing team and setting traps for them in the exam. This will backfire, as you find even your best students being snared due to an instant of inattention or time pressure.
One of the worst offenses is to write a question and then not provide any answer that correctly replies to it. If you opt for the negative - requiring your students to identify all four distracters as wrong even lacking the correct answer to contrast them with you will end up teaching them what is wrong, not what is right. Needless to say that as a distracter, "none of the above" will be ineffective in most cases.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #5: Use "all of the above" sparingly.
For similar reasons, "all of the above" should not be used too often. There is an increased chance that a good student who knows the material well will fall for a distracter that is correct but not complete. This is especially true since in this scenario the correct answer is last, and the trap is sprung at the first distracter.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #4: Position the correct answer randomly.
Many instructors are tempted to "hide" the correct answer among the distracters. If you do this, you will find yourself positioning the correct answer in the middle and rarely if ever in the first or last position ("A" or "E"). A savvy student is likely to use such a non-random distribution to increase his or her score when guessing.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #3: Include questions that require understanding and ones that require problem solving, not just pure memorization.
It is very easy to write multiple choice question that test memory. For example, "what year did World War II start?" Writing distracters, even good ones, for this question is as simple as can be.
However, although these questions do have their place, it is important to test your students on higher cognitive levels as well. This will allow you to ensure that students who do well on your exam deserve a good grade in your course.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #2: Defeat cheaters without penalizing honesty.
Many surveys among college students show a disturbing trend of increasing academic dishonesty. This includes the age-old favorite - glancing over the shoulder of the student in the seat ahead of them. Proving dishonesty in such cases is difficult. Instead, you can beat cheaters by using their behavior against them.
Without notice, pass out two versions of the exam with version A handed out to odd rows, and version B to even rows. Each version should have the same questions in the same order. Each question should have the same correct answer and the same distracters, only in different order between versions. This way the difficulty level is identical for all students, yet those who attempt to cheat are liable to get all the questions wrong.
Top 10 tips on how to write good multiple choice exams #1: Help your students prepare well by providing practice exams.
Although at times it may seem instructors and students are on opposing sides, the truth is that we're all partners in their education. If your exam is written well (see tip #3 above) it is in everyone's interest that your students do well on your exam, if they can do so without cheating.
Keep a file with your old exams and possibly exercise sheets from previous years. Before the exam hand out copies of these to your students and encourage them to practice solving the problems. If you give them enough practice exams they will learn what is important for you that they know, which is what it is all about.
Published by Opher Ganel
Researcher, teacher, photographer, storyteller. Creativity is my escape from the day-to-day.
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